USA's woeful start to the tour of Uganda continued on Sunday as the hosts easily brushed the Americans aside by seven wickets behind 37 from Player of the Match Stephanie Nampiina. 

Photo credit: Cricket Uganda

By Peter Della Penna (Twitter/X @PeterDellaPenna)
 
Uganda opener Stephanie Nampiina top-scored with 37 in a simple chase as the hosts maintained their unbeaten record in the Victoria T20 Series at Entebbe while USA’s struggles continued in a seven-wicket loss on Sunday afternoon. USA could only score three boundaries, and none after the eighth over, in a feeble batting display which ended on 93 for 7 after 20 overs before Uganda comfortably chased it down with 27 balls to spare. 
 
USA won the toss and chose to bat first, making two changes from their loss to Namibia a day earlier as the pace bowling pair of Maahi Madhavan and Lekha Shetty returned in place of Geetika Kodali and Jivana Aras as part of USA's fast bowling rotation policy on back-to-back days. However, Pooja Ganesh remained on the bench with an unspecified injury, which according to USA team management was sustained during the first-day loss to Rwanda.

USA found themselves quickly on the back foot in the third over when Chetna Pagydyala was given lbw for the third match in a row, this time for 2. While the decisions against her were dubious against Rwanda and Namibia, there could be no complaints today after she fanned on a straight ball and was struck in front of middle stump by a length ball from Malisa Ariokot to make the score 9 for 1. 
 
New batter Isani Vaghela survived a botched runout relay in the fourth over when she was on just two, but the next USA wicket fell in the fifth over when Sainavi Kambalapalli tried to repeat a successful drive for four over mid-on but instead was bowled by Ariokot for 13 to make it 20 for 2. Ella Claridge came in at No, 4 and got off the mark with a boundary before punching a three to the cover boundary to end the Powerplay at 28 for 2. But on the first ball of the seventh over, she played around a straight ball from Sarah Walaza and saw her off stump knocked back to make it 28 for 3. 
 
USA’s longest partnership of the day came next as Nikhar Doshi joined Vaghela to add 28 runs for the fourth wicket across 32 balls. Vaghela struck USA’s final boundary during the stretch, driving Immaculate Nakisuuyi over mid-off in the eighth over. She then survived two chances, dropped at long-on by Walaza off Janet Mbabazi on 13 and then again on a swirling skier by Asumin Akurut off her own bowling in the 10^th with Vaghela on 16. But Vaghela’s luck ran out on 21 in the 12^th when she miscued a knee high full toss that resulted in a top edge to Musamali at midwicket as Akurut claimed her first wicket to make it 56 for 4. 
 
Doshi then ran herself out in the 14^th for 17 when she tried to take on Akurut’s arm at short third but a sharp relay on an attempted tap and run by Ritu Singh found Doshi three yards short to make it 65 for 5. Gargi Bhogle then fell for 4 in the following over on a failed charge down the pitch to Akurut to be stumped at 67 for 6. 
 
USA captain Aditi Chudasama was dropped at slip on her second ball, but survived to help Singh stretch out the innings as the pair added 26 in a seventh-wicket stand. But not only could they not find the boundary, they struggled for a boost in the final overs, managing just two singles against Ariokot in the 19^th. Chudasama was eventually run out for 16 on the final ball of the innings after being slow to react on a swing and miss in which Singh had set off looking for a bye. Singh ended not out on 10 off 15 balls. 
 
Ariokot was unlucky not to be named Player of the Match after dismissing both USA openers and finishing with 2 for 14 including a maiden. Akurut claimed 2 for 18 off her four overs while Walaza ended as Uganda’s only other wicket-taker to record 1 for 16 off three overs. 
 
Uganda received a slice of good fortune early in the chase when Nampiina was given not out on 4 in the third over to Maahi Madhavan after a full delivery which replays showed struck Nampiina in front of middle stump below the knee roll. But she capitalized by being efficient and anchoring the innings for Uganda. 
 
It took until the seventh over before USA was finally able to make a breakthrough and it came from Kambalapalli, who continued to be USA’s standout bowler on tour by taking two more wickets in the contest. Her first was Uganda captain Janet Mbabazi, who sliced a cut in the air that carried to Vaghela diving forward at backward point for 14 to make it 35 for 1. Proscovia Alako got off the mark with a firm drive over mid-off for four before completing one of two threes run by Uganda in a 12-run eighth over. But she fell on the final ball of the ninth for 7, skying a heave toward long-on where Singh charged in to pull off a superb diving catch making it 50 for 2. 
 
However, USA’s sloppiness returned not long after in the 12^th as new batter Rita Musamali followed up a traditional boundary off the bat with an all-run four when she tapped a single to mid-off against Lekha Shetty’s medium pace only for Singh to unleash an errant throw toward the non-striker’s stumps that was never backed up and resulted in three additional overthrows. Musamali bashed another pair of fours over the leg side off Madhavan in the 15^th over to take Uganda one shot away from victory at 92 for 2.
 
Nampiina tried to strike the winning runs off the second ball of the 16^th over against Chopra, but her lofted drive failed to clear Vaghela on the ring and resulted in the third wicket. However, Esther Iloku ended the match one ball later by flicking Chopra through square leg for two. Musamali ended not out on 27 off 18 balls. 
 
In addition to Kambalapalli’s 2 for 18 off four overs, Chopra took 1 for 4 off 1.2 overs to be USA’s other wicket-taker. Chudasama wound up as USA’s least economical bowler, conceding 0 for 18 off two, while Madhavan wound up as USA’s most expensive overall by allowing 0 for 26 off four. 
 
In the day’s other match, Namibia recorded their second win of the tournament with a 39-run victory over Rwanda. Kayleen Green top-scored with 39 opening the batting for Namibia in their total of 98 for 8 before she took 3 for 10 off two overs in the field to help bowl out Rwanda for 59. 
 
All teams have a rest day on Monday before the tournament returns to action on Tuesday with USA taking on Rwanda once again in the morning match of the day’s doubleheader before Uganda takes on Namibia in the afternoon in a battle for first place in the double round-robin event.